Randy Rogers Band

Music held a central place in Randy Rogers' world from childhood onward. Raised in Cleburne, Texas, he learned piano from his great-grandmother beginning at age six, and by eleven he was already crafting original songs while picking up guitar chords. After playing in a support band for a stretch, he opted to front his own outfit and, together with college friends, launched the Randy Rogers Band. Their first release, Live at Cheatham St. Warehouse, was captured at the San Marcos, Texas bar of the same name soon after the group's initial rehearsal. Their debut studio effort, Like It Used to Be, arrived in 2002, with 2004's Rollercoaster documenting the now-stable lineup of Geoffrey Hill on guitar, Jon Richardson on bass, Brady Black on fiddle, and Les Lawless on drums. The following year brought Live at Billy Bob's Texas and a contract with Mercury Nashville, which put out Just a Matter of Time in 2006. That summer Rolling Stone listed the band among its Top Ten Must-See Artists alongside U2 and the Rolling Stones. Touring receipts reached $2.5 million, a notable sum for a developing act, while shared bills included Willie Nelson, the Eagles, Gary Allan, and Dierks Bentley. A self-titled album produced by Radney Foster followed in 2008 amid continued road work. The band shifted to MCA Nashville for 2010's Burning the Day, helmed by Paul Worley and led by the single "Too Late for Goodbye." Although Burning the Day and its 2013 follow-up Trouble performed solidly on Billboard's Country charts, neither produced major singles, prompting a split from the label in 2014. Rogers stepped aside briefly in 2015 for the duet project Hold My Beer, Vol. 1 with Wade Bowen, after which the Randy Rogers Band returned on its own independent label with Nothing Shines Like Neon in early 2016.